SPRINGFIELD - Erica Ashley Luce, the mother of 6-week-old Ethan Luce, who died after being left alone in a hotel room with his older brother, will appear in Springfield District Court June 2 for a bindover hearing to determine if the case against her should be heard in Superior Court.

Luce, 22, who was charged with involuntary manslaughter last month, appeared in District Court for a pre-trial conference Friday.

An investigation into the death of the infant, Ethan Luce, showed that he died Jan. 24 from injuries, including several skull fractures, inflicted by his 3-year-old brother, Sean Luce Jr., according to Hampden District Attorney William M. Bennett. The state Department of Children and Families was granted legal custody of Sean on Jan. 25.

The baby, whose death initially was termed “suspicious” by police, had been at the Clarion Hotel and Conference Center in West Springfield for about two weeks with his mother and brother. The family, which was homeless, was placed at the hotel on a transitional basis through the state Department of Housing and Community Development until a more permanent setting could be found.

“The autopsy revealed the child died from multiple trauma, including several fractures to the skull,” Bennett said afater the arrest in January. “Obviously, there aren't going to be any criminal charges against the 3-year-old child.”

An account of the incident given to investigators by the 3-year-old corroborated the medical examiner's findings, Bennett said.

Burke said that there were "a number of assaults," during the three-hour period in which the boys were left alone.

Erica Luce told the news media that she found her son covered in cold water and lying naked next to an air conditioner, which was turned on full blast. She claimed a stranger broke into her room at the Clarion, 1080 Riverdale St., while she was in an adjacent room talking to a friend.